Friday, November 2, 2012

Something Out of My Ordinary

As a habit, I don't generally do a lot of representational work. I love working in the abstract and I love making collages that are randomly arranged. However, every once in a while I get an idea that sticks long enough for me to do something with it. This simple piece actually has some more interesting aspects to it, so I thought I would share it with you.

The blue background is hand dyed cotton that I did using a low water immersion technique. The table at the bottom is a collection of black and white batiks that I had. I put Mistyfuse on the back of the batiks, cut them with a wavy blade rotary cutter and fused them together to make a more interesting texture for a table.

The stems and leaves were also done by fusing small pieces of randomly arranged green fabrics. It adds a whimsical feel to the piece, while still being representational. The petals were a variety of yellow batiks and almost solids, which gives the flowers a more realistic look - since flower petals can sometimes appear varied in color when they catch the light. The vase is a red batik that I quilted in such a way as to add dimension.

Here is a closer look at the flowers with the varied yellow fabrics. Also, you can see the loop-de-loop free motion quilting in the background to keep the fun feel of the piece. The borders were made with a different red batik and solid black quilters cotton. Overall, I am happy with the quilt even though it is our of my usual vein of work. Which is why I call my studio "Random Acts of Piece", because sometimes even I am not sure what will come out of there.

As an aside, I also put together this quick project using black quilters cotton and some silk yarn that I purchased at a quilt show. The vase inside I picked up at our town wide garage sales in September and it was in a "free" box. It was a pretty non-descript clear glass vase but, I knew that I could use it for a functional project.

The silk is sort of frayed and textured so it adds some dimension. The vase on the inside is about half an inch shorter than the fabric piece that conceals it. Once you add flowers, you can't see it.

I ran the silk along the seamed corners and top edge to help give the vase extra sturdiness. The fabric is fused to Timtex so it will hold its shape. Quick, easy and functional.

Thanks for visiting the blog. Feel free to leave a comment. My next post will include shells and stones that I collect at the Jersey shore. As I work on it, I can't help but think of the people who lost so much and are still struggling down there. I hope to finish it soon before the power is restored in the rest of the state and I have to return to work. Although a little normalcy would be very welcome here.

Follow by Email

Total Pageviews

Subscribe To

Followers

About Me

As far back as I can remember, I have always loved fabric. Having a mother and grandmother who sewed very well I was taught early about a sewing machine. I went through the usual stages - doll clothes, my clothes, prom dress, home decor, baby items and clothes for my children. I dabbled in various other media and tried my hand at several crafts. I always returned to my sewing machine and fabric. And over time, I developed some pretty good skills.
Then one day a few years ago during graduate school I met a woman who introduced me to art quilting magazine and I was hooked. I poured over that magazine for hours. I realized that all the other things that I had tried over the years would still apply as I worked my way into art quilting. I now make mixed-media art quilts. I've decided that I will only use my machine and my valuable time to make what I cannot buy. Unique one-of-a-kind pieces that bring me a sense of peace and accomplishment. So, after a few years of experimenting, I launched this blog so I could meet some other fabric enthusiasts as I make my way through my random acts of piece.